[kellyamina]

Firstly Im new here so not sure if Im putting this in the correct place!
Having problems with settling stomach of my new pup..when I got him 3 weeks ago his poos were fine. The breeder gave me a small bag of the biscuits he was fed on there, and I mixed them with puppy Iams to slowly change.
Since then it went downhill.
Runny poos...blood, etc etc.
Hes been to vets 3 times and theres nothing wrong with him except a colitis type thing. Have since changed the biscuits 3 times, tried james well beloved, and even a prescrition biscuit for bad stomachs....but every time I give him any kind of biscuits it gets loose again.
Have now got him on the tins ofchappie. Hes fine with it. First time we had firm poos in ages! But every time I introduce even just a tiny amount of biscuits it gets bad again.
Anyway so my question is, do you think itd be ok to keep him on just the chappie. The vets always frown upon it, as obviously they say it hasnt got the correct stuff in for a growing pup...but I know they have to go by the book, and is it really going to do that much harm? After all, animals dont have puppy biscuits in the wild and seem to cope perfectly well!
Thanks!

 

[newfiesmum]

Firstly Im new here so not sure if Im putting this in the correct place!
Having problems with settling stomach of my new pup..when I got him 3 weeks ago his poos were fine. The breeder gave me a small bag of the biscuits he was fed on there, and I mixed them with puppy Iams to slowly change.
Since then it went downhill.
Runny poos...blood, etc etc.
Hes been to vets 3 times and theres nothing wrong with him except a colitis type thing. Have since changed the biscuits 3 times, tried james well beloved, and even a prescrition biscuit for bad stomachs....but every time I give him any kind of biscuits it gets loose again.
Have now got him on the tins ofchappie. Hes fine with it. First time we had firm poos in ages! But every time I introduce even just a tiny amount of biscuits it gets bad again.
Anyway so my question is, do you think itd be ok to keep him on just the chappie. The vets always frown upon it, as obviously they say it hasnt got the correct stuff in for a growing pup...but I know they have to go by the book, and is it really going to do that much harm? After all, animals dont have puppy biscuits in the wild and seem to cope perfectly well!
Thanks!

In the wild they eat raw meat, which is what a lot of dog owners are now feeding. It is a difficult question, really, as I am a great believer in Chappie - the original - it is wonderful stuff for settling dodgy tums and my dogs still have chappie if I run out of their normal food. But as far as giving it to a puppy, again it is a question of choice. Some on here don't use puppy food at all, just go straight on to adult.

Personally, if it is helping him I would stick with it. I am surprised the vet hasn't told you to give him fish or chicken and rice though. That is what they usually say for upset tums.

What breed is he?

 

[kellyamina]

Hes a cocker spaniel.
The vet did recommend the chicken and rice to start with, but then as soon as I try to start adding biscuits it gets bad again....so now theyve recommended these gastro intestinal biscuits to add to his chappie, as I told them hes fine with the chappie.
I would love to just stick with the chappie...as like I said its the only thing Ive found so far that hes fine with...but just a bit worried he wont get the vits, protein etc that he needs

 

[Bobbie]

If you are worried about the Chappie you can have a look at Naturesdiet this is a wet food which is very good. As for the kibble stuff have you tried Fish/potato this seems to be very gentle on tums.

 

[newfiesmum]

I don't really know why he needs biscuits at all. Have a look on the chappie tin and see what vitamins are already included. You can always add a vitamin supplement if it doesn't look good enough.

Before I had Ferdie I had a golden retriever and before that a mongrel who would not touch dog food at all. He would only eat human food so he had whatever we were having. Sammy, my retriever, never had biscuits at all and he lived to be fourteen.

If the biscuits don't suit him, don't give them to him.

 

[kellyamina]

I thought about trying the naturesdiet stuff... maybe Ill get some and try.
It seems all these puppy foods are just far too rich for pups

 

[kellyamina]

Thanks for the help...Its not the actual biscuits Im wanting him to have, its the vitamins that are in them...and the proper puppy food seems to have about 5 times more protein in than adult food....
Anyone know if theres a protein supplement I can put in his chappie?

 

[newfiesmum]

Thanks for the help...Its not the actual biscuits Im wanting him to have, its the vitamins that are in them...and the proper puppy food seems to have about 5 times more protein in than adult food....
Anyone know if theres a protein supplement I can put in his chappie?

Have a look at simply supplements website, or viovet; see what they have.

 

[Sleeping_Lion]

I wouldn't worry about the higher protein in puppy versions of food, I don't believe in life stage foods at all, and even though I raw feed, I do like to keep up to date on what commercial foods are available.

What biscuit is it that you're trying to put him back onto? Chappie is what my vets recommend btw for a dodgy tummy, which I absolutely agree with, much cheaper than the tins of Hills stuff for sensitive tums which many vets try and flog you for no real reason.

 

[newfiesmum]

I wouldn't worry about the higher protein in puppy versions of food, I don't believe in life stage foods at all, and even though I raw feed, I do like to keep up to date on what commercial foods are available.

What biscuit is it that you're trying to put him back onto? Chappie is what my vets recommend btw for a dodgy tummy, which I absolutely agree with, much cheaper than the tins of Hills stuff for sensitive tums which many vets try and flog you for no real reason.

We used that Hills tinned when my retriever had a dodgy tum it made him violently ill. Chappie sorted him out.

 

[Sleeping_Lion]

We used that Hills tinned when my retriever had a dodgy tum it made him violently ill. Chappie sorted him out.

The thing that annoys me most about it is most vets don't ask, they just stick it on the bill and expect you to pay for it!

 

[kellyamina]

Tried puppy Iams, James well beloved, some other for sensitive stomachs, and now the vet insisted I buy the royal canin gastro intestinal junior.
None of them agree with him.
Vets insist he shouldnt stay on the chappie permanent as it hasnt got the correct vits etc for a growing pup....but I think Im going to stick with it.
I usually put a bit of chicken in with it too...just for a bit of variety!
He certainly doesnt seem like hes lacking anything ( currently hanging off my sock!)

 

[kellyamina]

The thing that annoys me most about it is most vets don't ask, they just stick it on the bill and expect you to pay for it!

Exactly! They didnt listen to what I was saying either. I told them I want to stick with the chappie and is there any supplements I can give him with it...they insisted I take the biscuits and put it on my bill! I told them it seems to be any biscuits that upsets him....and they did! Ive a good mind to take this opened bag back and demand a refund

 

[Sleeping_Lion]

Iams and Royal Canin are pretty rubbish, James Well Beloved is ok, but I think they were taken over a while back and I can't remember which company it is now that makes their complete food, but it's not the best from memory, so the ingredients might not be as good as they once were.

You'll get plenty of recommendations from folk I'm sure, but I'd keep him on the chappie for now, get his poo solid for about a week, and then maybe try just one food, without anything extra in there, otherwise you can't guarantee it's the food that's giving him a dodgy tum, it could be any of the other things you're adding to try and make it more appetising or easy to digest.

I have used Simpson's Premium Lamb and Potato (adult version) to wean my litter of pups onto for those who didn't want to raw feed. You can buy it online if fyou google the name, and they have a list of retailers who stock their food as well. For the ingredients they use, they are good value for money with good quality ingredients for the main part. I'm sure others will recommend foods to try, have a look through them and choose one to go with.

I'd only add a few bits in at a time to see how he goes with it, and take it from there, if he's ok, a very gradual increase in kibble, and decrease in the chappie. That's what I would do if it were my pup, well actually, I'd give them raw food, but you know what I mean

I'm sure others will be along with more advice.

 

[newfiesmum]

Tried puppy Iams, James well beloved, some other for sensitive stomachs, and now the vet insisted I buy the royal canin gastro intestinal junior.
None of them agree with him.
Vets insist he shouldnt stay on the chappie permanent as it hasnt got the correct vits etc for a growing pup....but I think Im going to stick with it.
I usually put a bit of chicken in with it too...just for a bit of variety!
He certainly doesnt seem like hes lacking anything ( currently hanging off my sock!)

I tried all those things when my dogs had the squelchies but chappie was the only thing that worked.

Exactly! They didnt listen to what I was saying either. I told them I want to stick with the chappie and is there any supplements I can give him with it...they insisted I take the biscuits and put it on my bill! I told them it seems to be any biscuits that upsets him....and they did! Ive a good mind to take this opened bag back and demand a refund

The reason the vet wants him off the chappie is because he doesn't sell it! They can't wait to sell you what they have in stock and quite frankly, even if it did suit him, it would be a hell of a lot cheaper online. If the dog is healthy, stick with the chappie. It is great stuff.

 

[Sleeping_Lion]

Exactly! They didnt listen to what I was saying either. I told them I want to stick with the chappie and is there any supplements I can give him with it...they insisted I take the biscuits and put it on my bill! I told them it seems to be any biscuits that upsets him....and they did! Ive a good mind to take this opened bag back and demand a refund

From what others who have more knowledge of the courses vets do during their training, they only do a day or two of canine nutrition, which is (guess what) sponsored by a couple of dog food companies, I bet you could name two of them by now

 

[terencesmum]

Tried puppy Iams, James well beloved, some other for sensitive stomachs, and now the vet insisted I buy the royal canin gastro intestinal junior.
None of them agree with him.
Vets insist he shouldnt stay on the chappie permanent as it hasnt got the correct vits etc for a growing pup....but I think Im going to stick with it.
I usually put a bit of chicken in with it too...just for a bit of variety!
He certainly doesnt seem like hes lacking anything ( currently hanging off my sock!)

Just wanted to add: That's an awful lot of food to try in 3 weeks. Chopping and changing food often results in dicky tums, so stick to something like the Chappie, research the food you want to give your pup, and then very gradually introduce the new food.

 

[kellyamina]

to be honest the actual vet didnt have a clue to recommend, she had to pass me on to the vet nurse who she said was more experienced in nutrition.
Ok I think Im gonna stick with the chappie....

 

[rona]

I would certainly be sticking to the Chappie for several weeks. Your poor pups tum has taken a bashing over the last few weeks and needs time to settle before even thinking of adding anything else.

Do you give any treats?

 

[kellyamina]

No he doesnt have any treats....he has nothing but chappie and chicken. If I try him on a new biscuits I jus introduce a few to his chappie....then he gets loose again so I stop and just go back to the chappie n chicken